A VERY SUCCESSFUL WEEKEND'S WORK

By Graham Potter | Sunday, October 3, 2021

What a weekend for the Sears training partnership!

The Tony and Maddysen Sears team turned out four winners and also claimed a second and fourth placing from seven starters at four different venues … results which not only highlights how well they place their horses, but also the way stables have to deal with the travel logistics of the modern era where, quite literally, lots of ground has to be covered.

PROMETHEUS

Prometheus (at $7 the longest priced runner in the five horse field) kicked off the Sears’ weekend run of success with a very easy, clear-cut three length victory in a 1400m Open Handicap at the Gold Coast on October 2.

Here, Prometheus reiterated two of his preferences … the Gold Coast track (where he has won three out of four starts) and underfoot conditions that are rated as heavy (Prometheus has recorded two wins and had two minor placings on heavy going and the Gold Coast was a heavy 8 on the day).

Jag Guthmann-Chester took Prometheus back at the break and he was content to bide his time in last spot, a little over four lengths back and it was a particularly patient ride by Guthmann-Chester, who only asked Prometheus for something extra on the home turn.

It did take Prometheus a little while to rev up after straightening but, once he did, he put his opposition away in emphatic fashion to win as he liked.

This latest result improved the eight-year-old’s record since moving into the Sears yard to five wins from fifteen starts … and to nine wins from forty-two starts overall.

DYNAMIC DUO

Also on October 2, Dynamic Duo kicked off a good evening for the Sears stable at Toowoomba by taking out the first race on the card. The win came in a BM62 contest over 1200m in only the second start for the stable after transferring from trainer Tony Noonan.

The Sears camp had taken Dynamic Duo straight to town for the gelding’s first start for the stable and, although he finished out of the placings there, he was only 1.90 lengths behind the winner Sir Warwick who was winning for the second time in a row.

On the back of that it was not surprising that Dynamic Duo was well supported in the Toowoomba run, starting at the restrictive odds of $1.55, and he duly got the chocolates under a well measured ride by Georgina Cartwright.

Eight lengths back in the early part … five wide, but making good ground on straightening, Dynamic Duo finished over the top of them winning a bit more comfortably than the official 0.50 length margin suggests.

WINNEBA

One race after Dynamic Duo had secured his latest success, the Sears stable put a race to race double on the board with Winneba ($2.50) prevailing in a dogfight with market rival South Street Boss ($2.90), getting home by the narrowest of margins in a Class 1 Handicap over 1000m.

These two runners both jumped well but Winneba had the early speed to claim an outright lead and the Better Than Ready filly took the field down the back straight at a fair tempo, being tracked throughout by South Street Boss racing behind her on the rail.

South Street Boss made his play just before straightening, coming around the heels of Winneba to launch a strong challenge.

Winneba had to be strong as South Street Boss settled to his task, but she was just that, kicking on under pressure to keep her older rival at bay … albeit by a diminishing, narrow margin.

Another top ride by Georgina Cartwright.

PIRACY

Tara is over a two hour trip from Toowoomba, but the Sears camp though it worthwhile to make the trip there with the seven year old gelding Piracy … and their judgement proved to be spot on as the Exceed And Excel gelding added an eighth win to his race record.

In fact, the horse looked to be a sighter on form because, while his previous two runs did show unplaced finishes, a closer look revealed that both of those runs came in town, at Eagle Farm, in races won by the highly thought of, ultra-consistent, ten-time winner King Klaus and the two-time city winner Genzai the Wolf.

There was nothing in like that level of opposition in the Stampede Qualifier Open Handicap over 1050m at Tara, although, interestingly enough, Piracy only started second favourite at $3 with Patented topping the boards at $2.

These two runners duly fought out the finish … but came home in the reverse order of that shown on the betting boards with apprentice Bella Rabjones urging Piracy to a 0.20 length victory to round off a great weekend for the stable.

*The Country Stampede Challenge consists of sixteen qualifying races throughout Queensland. The Tara contest was the third race in the series which will have its final showdown on George Moore Stakes race-day at Doomben on December 4 in a race worth $75 000.

RUNNERS THAT PLACED

In addition to the four weekend winners mentioned above, the Sears stable also saddled two runners over the weekend who filled minor placings … that being Lady Fey in a Maiden Handicap over 1050m at (Lady Fey finished second for the third time in five starts) and Baanone, who finished fourth in a BM85 Handicap over 1630m at Doomben.

THE RECENT STRIKE RATE

This latest run of results also means that the Sears Training Partnership will go into the new week having saddled five winners from its last eight runners.

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